The twins feathers
by Baran3
Summary: sidestory of 'Exitus Acta Probat'. This is how Elizabeth is confronted to her divine origin when she...died.
1. prelude

**Side story Exitus Acta Probat**

**The twins Feathers**

Disclaimer: I own nothing except Elizabeth Crowley.

Note: This side story is not in the story-line of Sic Semper Morituri but in my fan fiction 'Exitus Acta Probat'. This is what happened when Elizabeth Crowley is confronted to her divine origin. In my story this happened when she …died.

Thank you to Daniel Gibson for his pre-reading and correction.

**PRELUDE**

In the darkest part of the void, a watery light exploded in existence and two forms fell from it.

The two forms revealed themselves to be two teenagers. They were two young girls with long golden hair. They were falling together back against back and were each clothed in a long crème robe. Their eyelids fluttered simultaneously and opened, revealing sky blue eyes.

They spoke at the same time. "//Where I am?//"

They blinked together and slowly rotated to face each other. They were identical twins down to the smallest details.

"I know you."

"I remember you."

Those simple words seemed to calm them and they considered their situation. Eerily, they continue to act as if they were one person.

"//It's as if we are falling from the sky. It's funny. Why are we not afraid?//"

Above them, there was an explosion of light like the opening of a gateway.

"SISTER!"

An angelic figure garbed in blue armour and winged helm flew in and followed the fall of the twins, luminous wings shining brightly in her back, an air of desperation on her face. She was a mature woman with silver hair and she was crying, tears marked her pathway in the darkness.

"//She is worried for me? But who is she?//"

Another explosion of light drew the attention of the twins to another angelic form. This one was seemed older and was garbed in black armour and winged helm. She had grey hair but her face was hard with anger. Her shining wings brought her to the other woman and she caught her in her arms.

"By the Nine Worlds! What are you doing, Lenneth?!"

The blue angel was struggling against the black one and was trying to reach for the twins. "Let me go, Hirst! SISTER! LET ME GO I SAID! SISTER! COME BACK! COME BACK TO US!"

"I CAN'T LET YOU GO! YOU ARE ENDANGERING ALL THE CREATION!"

"I don't care! SISTER!"

"You can't do that! It's against all the rules! We're not even sure it's her!"

The black-clad woman forced the younger blue-clad woman through another of those luminous gateways. Struggling desperately, Lenneth turned her attention to the two falling forms. "SISTER! LISTEN! URU! FUTURE! YOU HEAR ME! U…"

She was abruptly cut off by the closing of the gate. The twins found themselves alone again falling in the darkness.

"// Why was she calling us 'sister' and where are we? It's warm and soft around us. And yet, we are anxious.//"

The two girls laid a hand on the heart of the other. "//We're not afraid but our heart is cold.//"

They heard the sound of wings around them and suddenly two ravens flew alongside them. Intelligent black eyes plunged into curious blue eyes and mind-voices reached the spirit of the twins.

'**I am Hugin.**'

'**I am Mugin.**'

They mind-spoke then together. '//**You will need these.**//'

They put in the left hand for one and in the right hand for the other a lump of grey metal. The twins 'knew' upon contact that it was something extremely precious.

"//Thank you very much.//"

The two birds seemed to smile and considered for a moment the two girls.

'**You must know!**'

'**You must remember!**'

They opened their wings and left the twins falling away as their black feathers make them disappear in the surrounding darkness.

The twins continued to fall, eyes closed, and the darkness left the place to the light of the day as if they were falling from orbit into the atmosphere of a planet. The sensation of the wind on their hair made their eyes to open.

The vision of the ground greeted them. It was a magnificent picture of the nature blooming in the spring. The twins were breathless seeing such a vision. And yet something drew their gazes: Something dark, something evil and not in the right place near a wall surrounding a town. Another cold sensation seized their hearts and suddenly a gust of wind caught them and unconsciousness took them.

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Notes: in my first scenario, I have the project to bring Elizabeth into the anime of 'Utena': More precisely in the background of the film. Elizabeth is fated to know about her divine origin in Exitus Acta Probat, but I didn't want to fully explain how in my story in order to bring a proper mysterious atmosphere.

So my first idea was to create a world where she would have to duel various protagonists to win her inheritance. In fact, my plan was to make her take the two roles of the Prince and the Rose Bride at the same time. But finally I decide to use 'Haibane Renmei' for a more mysterious way of discovering her origins and more gentle.

I hope that you will like this story better that way.

Read and review.


	2. CocoonKnowing and rememberingOld Home

**Side story Exitus Acta Probat**

**The twins Feathers**

Disclaimer: I own nothing except Elizabeth Crowley, Oboe and Chishiki.

Notes: Well, it's not bad. I have just decided to experiment a little with my stories. Don't be alarmed if the story seemed difficult to understand it's deliberate. I want to create a mysterious atmosphere. I hope I succeed, after all I detested when I didn't understand what happened in an anime.

Oboe: memory/experience.

Chishiki: knowledge.

Karasu: Raven.

**Chap 1: Cocoon/Knowing and remembering/Old Home.**

Inside Old Home, the Haibane Rakka, a beautiful late teenager girl with brown hair and eyes is walking a corridor trailing an electrical cable and lighting her way with a flashlight. Although her best friend Reki had taken her flight recently, she was happy. It will be her turn to be a venerable elder for the next Haibane like Reki had done for her. She will never forget Reki and all she had done for her. She stopped. Did she hear something coming from the last room she passed?

The round of light of her lamp travelled along the tiles of the floor and stopped on two plant-like bulbs growing rapidly from the floor, fracturing the tiles. She KNEW what those things were.

"Twins! It's incredible."

She almost fell in the stairs as she rushed to warn the others Haibane. She never heard of twins before but she was too excited to worry about it now.

"Oh my god! It's incredible!"

She must hurry. There was much to do to properly welcome the two new Haibane. She swore to herself that she will do a job that Reki would have been proud of.

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On the board near the principal exit, a new message was glued: 'Two new feathers are hatching. Please be mindful of them.' It was signed by a cute chibi-Rakka smiling.

On the road to Old Home, the blond and bespectacled Haibane Hikari was again riding on the bike of the boyish black-haired Haibane Kana.

"Go on Kana, we're almost here."

The two Haibane finally arrived to Old Home. Hikari advised the little wooden nametag markers. "They are already all there."

"Well, it's normal. We're too far away from the village." She turned to her comrade when she heard her giggling. Hikari pointed to the message on the board.

"Hey, nice idea. I think this could curb a little their excitement."

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Near the Cocoon's zone, the Young Feathers are helping Rakka to displace rubbish and clean the place. It seemed that the young girl managed to herd the curiosity of the young Haibane by asking their help and permitting them to see the cocoon.

"Be careful. It's heavy. Don't hurt yourselves."

"Don't worry, big sister, we're strong."

"I'm impatient to see them. It's the first time that we have twins."

Rakka smiled at the exuberance of the Young Feathers. "Please speak softly. They can hear you."

"Really?"

"Yes. I remember hearing the voices of the others before I hatch."

Kana smiled to Hikari when she saw the spectacle. "Told you she could manage it." She walked to her friend and her little helpers. "Hello everyone. I hope you're helping Rakka and not making a fuss."

"Hey! That mean. We are responsible Haibane."

Kana chuckled and turned to the brown-haired girl. "I'm impressed Rakka, you managed to control those little monsters."

Rakka smiled to the tomboy. "Their curiosity is natural and I have no problem with it as long as they respect the cocoon. By the way, do you two can take a break from your work for the hatching?"

Hikari walked to the group, glasses shining. "Of course, it's not the first time after all. Our employers know that for us, the Haibane, we can't miss it."

Kana sighed. "Yeah, but like the last time, I have no more than three days. So, we can see them."

"Yes, of course. Nemu is already here."

"Wouah! It is bigger than yours, Rakka."

"Now, this is something you don't see everyday." Hikari examined the two cocoons effectively glued to each other.

Nemu turned to her friends and sighed. "You two are once again late."

Kana frowned to the remark of Nemu. "It's not our fault. We have been warned too late. And you know how hard it is to me to take a break from my boss."

Nemu looked up to the coupled eggs. "Hum…The surface is greying. It's more rapid than your hatching, Rakka. It's going to hatch very soon, probably this night."

Rakka looked around the room. "Well, the room is tidy at least. There are just a few things to move and cleaning the dust and everything will be ready."

Kana beamed to the brown-haired Haibane. "You must feel excited Rakka. It is your turn to play the wise and venerable elder."

"I am happy mostly and a little impatient too. That reminds me. Hikari?"

"Yes?"

"If you could… I mean… Can you be my co-elder with me?"

Hikari blinked at the question. "Why? You are the next elder according to the Tradition."

"Yes…but…I will be more reassured if you were here. There are two of them…and…"

"All right. All right. There's only one of you." She tapped her lips. "Ok. I will be honoured to be an elder along with you."

"Thank you, Hikari."

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Inside the double cocoon, two silhouettes floated in a green liquid. The twins face each other, sleeping peacefully in their watery nest. Their eyelids opened simultaneously.

'//_Where are we? Is it a dream?_//'

They looked around them and realised that they are underwater. Curiously, they are not panicked.

'//_We can breathe this liquid? It's strange, it's as if it was not the first time._//'

'_I do not know if this is a dream._'

'_I do not remember if this is a dream._'

They advised the soft material plant-like of the inside of the cocoon. Behind it was a hard greyish substance. The twins perceived sounds penetrating their environment.

'//_We're hearing voices._//'

"Well, we have finished at last. It's clean enough."

'//_There are people outside._//'

"Oh. My back is killing me."

"I'm tired."

Outside the cocoon, the Habaine finished to put away their brooms. Rakka smiled to her friends.

"So, two groups, right? Hikari and me then Nemu and Kana."

Kana smirked. "Yeah. No problem. As long as Nemu sleep outside her turn."

"How dare you?"

Rakka attempted to prevent a dispute. "Hey. Keep calm everybody. It's just waiting for any funny noises. One stay near the cocoon and the other warn those who are sleeping."

//_Rakka_//

"Huh? Did you hear that?"

"Hear what?"

//_Kana_//

"What was that?"

//_Hikari_//

"Who's talking?"

"Are you all dreaming awake, I heard no…"

//_Nemu_//

"…thing… What?"

The side of the cocoon began to break as a pale blue light manifested in the fault-lines.

Kana leaned with the rest of the Haibane to observe the phenomena. "Huh? Never seen that before"

"Quick! It's cracking! Open the door." Hikari remembered the last time: they almost drowned in the flood.

"Oh, yes! We almost forgot." Nemu ran to the door and flung it open.

The cracked wall suddenly collapsed and a wave of green water splashed around the room. Rakka and Kana had just the time to catch two silhouettes falling from the opening.

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The two golden-haired teenagers slept in a big bed on their stomach, one of their hands gently holding the hand of the other. The other hand seemed closed around an object. Once again, they opened their eyes simultaneously and looked to each other.

'_I know her._'

'_I remember her._'

They now remarked that they are in an unknown room and in an unknown bed.

"What?"

"Where are we?"

They advised the nature of their clothes: It was a simple crème robe and they gently rubbed the sleeve of each other.

"//It's rough. In our dreams, everything was so soft. And it's smell like nuts.//"

As they faced each other, kneeling on the bed, they opened their hands and examined the lump of grey metal they have. They lovingly caressed the ovoid of the other, 'knowing' its importance. At that moment, they felt a pain in their back at the same time.

"//Ouch!//"

A knock at the door redirected their attention.

"//yes.//"

"Can I open, please?"

They blinked. The voice of the girl was not familiar. "//Yes?//"

A teenager in a school uniform opened the door but stayed out of the room smiling. She was beautiful with brown hair and eyes but it was secondary to the pair of small ash wings in her back and the glowing ring floating above her head.

"Hello, my name is Rakka. I know that you are confused but I am here to help you and answer your questions. Can I enter?"

The twins did not feel threatened. It was right that there were confused, but the strange girl did not seem hostile, to the contrary. "//Huh…yes?//"

Rakka walked to the bed and took a chair. "We felt that it was better that you awakened without too many unknown people around you."

"//'We'?//"

"Yes, there are three others with me. They are waiting for you to be ready before entering and presenting themselves."

"//Call them, please.//"

The rest of the Haibane entered on the signal of Rakka. The bespectacled blond Hikari, the black-haired tomboy Kana and the brown-haired mature Nemu: All having the same pair of small ash wings and the same glowing ring. They seated around the twins after saying their names.

"All right. I'm going to explain from the beginning. You are in the common room of a building called Old Home. It will be your bedroom until we arranged something else in the future. I am Rakka and this is Hikari. We are the ones here to help you, to guide you during your time with us. But, first, tell us about your dream."

"//Our dreams?//"

"Yes, the one you had during your sleep in the cocoon. Do not press yourself, sometimes the dream is frightening, but it is part of the tradition for giving you your name."

"//Our names? But my name is… Oh!//"

The twins blinked to each other again.

"I don't know my name."

"I don't remember my name."

"Don't worry. It's normal. All newborn do not remember their past, from where they came and what were their name. This is why every Haibane is baptized from the dream they have in the cocoon."

"Yeah, for example, I was swimming in a river like a fish. So, I'm called Kana, 'fresh water fish'."

"Me, I was surrounded by light. That why I am Hikari, 'light'."

"For me it was much simpler: I was sleeping, so I'm called Nemu, 'sleep'.

"And finally I dreamed that I was falling from very high in the sky. My name is Rakka, 'falling'."

"//Ah! We understand now. Let us think a moment, please.//"

Kana turned to Nemu and whispered to her in the ear. "A little creepy the way they have to speak the same phrase at the same time."

"Kana!" Nemu is mortified by the remark of her friend.

"//We fell from the sky… Two angels came to us, one blue wanted to catch us and one black preventing the blue one…then…two black birds flying with us and…giving us this.//"

The twins opened their hands and showed the two metal lumps to the Haibane.

"Well, for once, we have the choice of names with their dreams." Kana blinked. "Hey! Wait a minute. You two have made the same dream?"

The twins nodded together.

"Fantastic, we are going to have to name them like the stupid crows…"

"THEY'RE NOT STUPID…

"…AND THEY'RE NOT CROWS!"

The Haibane are startled by the vehemence of the twins who looked angrily to Kana.

"//They are Ravens, not crows.//"

"There's a difference?" Kana winced as the intensity of the angry gaze augmented. "All right! Ok! I'm sorry!"

The twins nodded again and looked at each other.

"I know the name of one…"

"…and I remember the name of the other."

They looked to their respective lump of metal.

"He was Hugin, 'Knowledge'…"

"…and he was Mugin, 'Memory'."

Rakka followed her intuition and like Reki for her, focused on what the twins had revealed. "'Hugin' and 'Mugin'…'Knowledge' and 'Memory'… That it! 'Chishiki' and 'Oboe'!" She pointed to the twin near Hikari. "You will be 'Chishiki' because you 'Know'." She pointed to the one near her. "And you will be 'Oboe' because you 'Remember'."

The twins blinked to Rakka and turned to each other, their blue eyes shining in the light of the sun.

"You are Chishiki…"

"…and you are Oboe."

"We remember…"

"…and we know."

"Good, good. Now there's just a last thing to do to properly welcome you among the Haibane. Kana? Nemu?"

The two Haibane approached with the mould for Halo. Kana elbowed gently Nemu. "Hey, Nemu? Since they are twins, let's do it together. It'll be…appropriate, I think."

Nemu smiled and nodded as she thought that it was a good idea. Since the twins seemed to do everything together, they must receive their halos together.

Nemu began. "Feather Chishiki…"

Kana finished. "…and Feather Oboe."

"//To help guide your future as a fellow Haibane, we present to you this halo. May it always help to guide your way. Welcome to Old Home, sisters Feathers!//"

Gently, the two Haibane extracted their still hot Halos from the mould with a pincher and let them go above the head of the newly christened Chishiki and Oboe. The halos hummed and suddenly glowed brightly, startling the Haibane.

The twins stayed immobile as their halo hummed and glowed with power then their eyes were set ablaze with a pure blue light for a brief instant. Immediately after that, everything returned to normal.

"Wouah! It's the Day of First Times, today. It's the first time that I see a halo doing that…Creepy."

"Kana!" Nemu felt exasperated.

"Sorry, sorry. Well, it's all right now." She extracted a pocket watch and smiled. "The noon break is finished. I need to go back. Sorry, but you know how my boss is, I must go."

Nemu smiled and followed Kana. "We have done the presentations and most of the explanations. Tomorrow, your wings will have grown. We will discuss more then. Rakka, Hikari, take good care of them."

Hikari and Rakka giggled as they waved good bye to their fellow Haibane. Hikari then turned to Chishiki, the one she choose to be her elder. "At last, a little calm. It's hard to explain everything with all the traditions to respect. So, where do you want to begin?"

"What is a Haibane?"

Hikari showed her profile to Chishiki and moved her wings. "This is the most simple way to explain. I am a Haibane. I hatched from a cocoon and I have those wings and this halo."

Oboe looked to the wings of Rakka. "They are real?"

"Yes, you can touch if you want."

"So soft…and warm…"

"Yours are going to grow probably tomorrow or at the very least, this night. Are you hurting in the back?"

"Yes. We thought…

"…we slept in a bad position…"

Rakka gestured to the twins. "Show us, please."

Rakka and Hikari examined the beginning of the swelling on the shoulder blades of their charges. They lightly touched the areas. Rakka smiled when she felt a small twitch under her fingers. "Does it hurt?"

"A little when…"

"…you push it."

"It appears that the growth is well underway, and quite normal." Hikari was satisfied of her inspection. "Soon the fever will come, but it only ever lasts for a single day. Everything will be much better tomorrow."

"//What is going to happen?//"

Rakka smiled hesitantly. "The wings usually appear within a day or two of hatching from the cocoon. The experience will be…"

Rakka's voice trailed off as she considered how to best explain what was coming to the two New Feathers. The emergence of the wings was typically the most painful experience that each Haibane faced. She remembered vividly her own experience and how her then-caregiver Reki had helped her and avoid frightening her.

"… painful. It will undoubtedly hurt quite a bit when the wing tips first break though the skin, but it'll be over pretty quickly."

Hikari brought her hand to the brow of Chishiki and distinctly felt her skin warming rapidly. She got up. "I'm bringing some ice. Stay with them. I'm preparing everything."

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As the evening came, the twins were lying on their stomach and gulping in air while Rakka and Hikari gently applied ice-packs to the swollen areas on their backs. The fever had come just as the elder Haibane had said it would. Chishiki and Oboe were covered in a fine sheen of sweat as unfamiliar muscles in their backs would occasionally spasm painfully. They were clutching their own metallic lump and the free hand of the other twin.

Rakka smiled a little to the twins. "I'm sorry. They are growing quicker than I thought. At least we explained everything before the beginning of your fever. Are you hurting?"

"Yes, we are hurting…"

"…But we also feel weird…"

"…Like the edge…"

"…of a cramp."

The smile of Rakka became a little crooked. "When they pierce the skin, it will hurt more. You will have a fever. But tomorrow, it will be finished."

Oboe turned to Rakka. "Are we humans or Angels?"

"No one know who we are, humans, angels or not. We called ourselves the Haibane, the Ash Feathers."

Chishiki fixed Hikari with her gaze. "We need to go home."

"The Haibane can't leave the town. Even if your family was somewhere in this world, they would not recognize you if they saw you."

"//Why?//"

"Because, this is the world where we live. No one in this world remembers or knows you."

"//Why are we here? There is a reason but…//"

"…I don't know…"

"…and I don't remember…"

"//…yet.//"

Rakka smiled more to the twins. "We all ask that ourselves. Part of the trial of a Haibane is to know, to remember this reason. To learn something from the others or to teach something to the others."

Once again in perfect harmony, blood swelled from a puncture in the skin on all the shoulder blades of the twins. The eyes of Hikari widened. "It's beginning!"

The two Haibane quickly seized the small rolled bundle of clothes and leather they have prepared beforehand.

"//It hurts! It hurt!//"

Hikari presented her bundle to the mouth of Chishiki. "Bite on this to not bite on your tongue!"

Almost immediately, the twins' struggles seemed to intensify. The swellings on their backs began to split and more blood started to trickle out. Rakka and Hikari have just managed to get the stick in between Chishiki and Oboe's teeth when they'd thrown back their heads and shrieked in agony with the same scream. The Haibane stared in amazement, as the wings began extracting themselves from their prison of flesh, because the blue eyes of the twins are glowing with an eerily blue light.

When the wings had pulled completely free, they spasmed briefly out to their full extension and splattered drops of blood in all directions before falling back to a more relaxed position. All around the bed, every single article of furniture or objects not fixed had levitated and moved in all the directions in an infernal ballet.

Rakka and Hikari cringed from the sound of the primal scream that tore from the throat of their charges. As soon as it was over, Chishiki and Oboe's struggles immediately ceased and their entire bodies went limp. All the floating and dancing objects and pieces of furniture slowly landed on the floor.

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'//_Our limbs are cold and heavy. Our wings tremble at each of the sharp pains in our backs. As the time pass, they are becoming more and more a part of us. We fear that our bodies are changing into something else. The fear came from the familiarity of the change and not its alieness. The sweat is burning our eyes. We see nothing but they are nearby._//'

"Rakka,…"

"…Hikari,…"

"//…you're here?//"

Around the twins, using gently a brush and water, Rakka and Hikari cleaned the bloodied wings. Rakka smiled to her charges. "We're here. Oboe and Chishiki. Don't worry."

"//What are you doing?//"

"We're cleaning your feathers."

"You're doing it…"

"…for a long time?"

Hikari smiled. "Don't worry. It takes only time. We must clean all the blood and grease."

"//Our brows are burning.//"

Rakka leaned to the twins. "Tomorrow, you will feel better. Like magic, everything will be finished."

"//Magic.//"

"Strange that…"

"…this simple word…"

"…bring sorrow…"

"…and exaltation…"

"//…to our heart.//"

Hikari giggled softly. "Well, you don't have to worry about your wings: Neither white, nor black, but a beautiful charcoal. Absolutely perfect."

Completely exhausted by their ordeal, the twins fell into a dreamless sleep.

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In the morning, Rakka and Hikari helped the twins to get up from the bed. They're still a little weary from their experience but the light of the sun seemed to give them a little boost. They smiled to each other and closely looked the wings of the other.

Gently, each twin reached for the wings of the other and softly touched them. A new tactile area is revealed to them.

"//They're real.//"

The twins turned to their elders, joy visible on their face.

"Rakka, Hikari, you continue to…"

"…wash them during our sleep?"

Hikari giggled. "Yes. They are clean, are they?"

Eyes shining, the twins bowed to them. "//Thank you very much.//"

Rakka smiled. "It was nothing." She then finished the preparation of the breakfast. Then, she lifted her cup in a toast, imitated by Hikari.

"Be welcome in our Old Home."

The two new Haibane smiled to the two elder Haibane, their halos, wings and eyes glowing under in the glorious light of the sun.

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Notes: It took me time to find proper names in Japanese for my character. I don't think that this story will require 13 chapters like the anime. Elizabeth has less interaction to have with Glie. She needs some information and she will fight against the mysterious darkness but I don't think I will develop the deep research in her soul that Rakka have done. Oh well, we will see.

Read and review please.


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